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Project Overview: Posted: 05/19/2006
The High Adventure Recreation (HARC) is currently under construction on the Junction Mall Site in
downtown Ogden City. The HARC is a private/city partnership that was officially approved to move
forward in late 2005 and is currently scheduled for completion in August of 2007.
The HARC includes a variety of components that are included together in one building to bring synergy
to each other and help revitalize the downtown area.
The first level of the new HARC includes a Fat Cats Family Fun Center that will run a family themed
bowling alley, glow in the dark golf, video arcade and two family oriented restaurants. This level will also
include access to the high adventure elements of the HARC, that include a State of the art Rock
Climbing Wall, a Surf Rider Wave Pool that is designed for indoor surfing and a state of the art
Skydiving Wind Tunnel that simulates a skydiving experience in a controlled environment.
The second level of the HARC includes a Golds Gym that will include many fitness center amenities,
such as a lap pool, basketball courts, racquetball courts, a sauna, a dance studio, weight room, running
track and other such like facilities.
The HARC will be connected to the renovated parking structure for easy access and there will be limited
parking on the street around the facility.
The HARC has been the key factor in bringing real investors to the table to revitalize the old mall site
area. The day I voted to move this project forward I commented on the many reasons that compelled
me to feel this decision was clearly in the long-term best interests of all Ogdenites. Please click here to
read my comments.
Note - The following list of facts are related to this issue or project and are accurate to the best of my knowledge at the
time I posted them. Often, complex projects change as they develop, so, I will add to and modify this list as new
information becomes available.
Important Information (FAQ):
Proposed Benefits:
The High Adventure Recreation Center will...
1) Bring additional Tax revenue to Ogden City - The HARC will bring additional tax revenue in the
city through our partner's payment of Use Tax, which is the equivalent of property tax revenue.
2) Bring Internal Synergy within the HARC - The HARC has brought together under one roof many
different businesses that will feed off of and accentuate each other. The businesses include: A family
bowling center, glow in the dark golf, and arcade, a dance studio, a private health club and the three
high adventure elements.
3) Bring External Synergy to the Mall Site and Downtown - The High Adventure Recreation Center is
the first of a string of projects that are committed to the redevelopment effort of the mall-site only if the
HARC is moving forward. In fact, since the project was approved, The Boyer Company has begun
development on the entire South end of the development that includes participation from Larry Miller.
The Earnshaw Building will be constructed soon and PRI has begun construction on an retail and office
building on the Northeast end of the mall-site.
4) Create a Regional Attraction in Ogden - The three high adventure elements will have some
regional appeal because they are so unique. Individuals will come into Ogden from around the area to
test out the high adventure facilities because they are not found anywhere near Ogden City.
5) Bring additional people into the downtown - The project will have a certain number of people that
naturally come into downtown to utilize the available recreation and entertainment. This will bolster
other businesses in the downtown area, because of the increased traffic flow.
Anticipated Costs and Impacts:
The High Adventure Recreation Center...
1) Required a capital outlay to build the building - As described above, Ogden City is financing the
HARC using two separate bond issues. Neither will raise tax rates, but there is a risk that comes from
the fact that we are the owners of the property and the leaser to the private LLC.
My Current Position:
I believe the High Adventure Recreation Center is a good project that allows the combined oversight of
the city with a private industry component that will manage and operate the facility. Even more
importantly, however, it has spurred additional investment into our downtown that is the foundation of
even more future redevelopment and interest in Ogden City as a place to do business.
Other Information Sources:
Ogden City web-site
The High Adventure Recreation (HARC) is currently under construction on the Junction Mall Site in
downtown Ogden City. The HARC is a private/city partnership that was officially approved to move
forward in late 2005 and is currently scheduled for completion in August of 2007.
The HARC includes a variety of components that are included together in one building to bring synergy
to each other and help revitalize the downtown area.
The first level of the new HARC includes a Fat Cats Family Fun Center that will run a family themed
bowling alley, glow in the dark golf, video arcade and two family oriented restaurants. This level will also
include access to the high adventure elements of the HARC, that include a State of the art Rock
Climbing Wall, a Surf Rider Wave Pool that is designed for indoor surfing and a state of the art
Skydiving Wind Tunnel that simulates a skydiving experience in a controlled environment.
The second level of the HARC includes a Golds Gym that will include many fitness center amenities,
such as a lap pool, basketball courts, racquetball courts, a sauna, a dance studio, weight room, running
track and other such like facilities.
The HARC will be connected to the renovated parking structure for easy access and there will be limited
parking on the street around the facility.
The HARC has been the key factor in bringing real investors to the table to revitalize the old mall site
area. The day I voted to move this project forward I commented on the many reasons that compelled
me to feel this decision was clearly in the long-term best interests of all Ogdenites. Please click here to
read my comments.
Note - The following list of facts are related to this issue or project and are accurate to the best of my knowledge at the
time I posted them. Often, complex projects change as they develop, so, I will add to and modify this list as new
information becomes available.
Important Information (FAQ):
- Ogden City has partnered with two private companies to make the development work. The first is
Fat Cats bowling alley and family fun center owned by Sean Collins and Dave Rutter with
locations in Salt Lake City and Provo and the second is a Golds Gym franchise, owned by Gary &
Peggi Nielsen, who also own and operate several other Gold's Gym franchises in the Ogden area.
- The High Adventure Recreation is owned by Ogden City. Our private partners will be leasing the
property and will incur all of the operational costs of the HARC. Ogden City are expected to incur
none of the operational expenses of the center.
- The first floor of the HARC will be open access. The second floor, Gold's Gym portion, will cost
an entrance fee or a membership to Gold's Gym. The three high adventure elements (Rock
Climbing Wall, Skydiving Wind Tunnel and Flowrider Surf Pool) will cost a market rate per each
use.
- Two separate bonds have been issued to make this project work:
- Series 2005A Bonds ($8,500,000) - This bond issue requires no new direct tax levy against
the tax payer, but only as other taxing entities might raise taxes to cover any anticipated
revenues. The funding source to pay the bond is future tax increment funding that is drawn
back from the taxing entities generated from specific Ogden City RDA projects. The School
Districts will keep all of the new generated tax increment. - Series 2005B Bonds ($9,500,000) - This bond issue requires no new tax levy against the
tax payer. The funding source for this bond is the lease revenue from the private entities
participating in the project.
- The private entities are investing $2,000,000 in equipment and entrance costs of the HARC.
- In order to get lower rates on the bond issues, Business Depot Ogden lease revenue has been
pledged as additional collateral. The project is not expecting to require the BDO revenue, but if
the series B lease payments run short there is a possibility that could happen.
- The tax increment funding that is being used as the funding source for the Series 2005A bond
can only be used on recreation facilities or cultural arts facilities. Our ability to use the funding
would have expired on 12/31/2005. Had we not used it then, we could not have utilized that
funding source for any other project in the future.
Proposed Benefits:
The High Adventure Recreation Center will...
1) Bring additional Tax revenue to Ogden City - The HARC will bring additional tax revenue in the
city through our partner's payment of Use Tax, which is the equivalent of property tax revenue.
2) Bring Internal Synergy within the HARC - The HARC has brought together under one roof many
different businesses that will feed off of and accentuate each other. The businesses include: A family
bowling center, glow in the dark golf, and arcade, a dance studio, a private health club and the three
high adventure elements.
3) Bring External Synergy to the Mall Site and Downtown - The High Adventure Recreation Center is
the first of a string of projects that are committed to the redevelopment effort of the mall-site only if the
HARC is moving forward. In fact, since the project was approved, The Boyer Company has begun
development on the entire South end of the development that includes participation from Larry Miller.
The Earnshaw Building will be constructed soon and PRI has begun construction on an retail and office
building on the Northeast end of the mall-site.
4) Create a Regional Attraction in Ogden - The three high adventure elements will have some
regional appeal because they are so unique. Individuals will come into Ogden from around the area to
test out the high adventure facilities because they are not found anywhere near Ogden City.
5) Bring additional people into the downtown - The project will have a certain number of people that
naturally come into downtown to utilize the available recreation and entertainment. This will bolster
other businesses in the downtown area, because of the increased traffic flow.
Anticipated Costs and Impacts:
The High Adventure Recreation Center...
1) Required a capital outlay to build the building - As described above, Ogden City is financing the
HARC using two separate bond issues. Neither will raise tax rates, but there is a risk that comes from
the fact that we are the owners of the property and the leaser to the private LLC.
My Current Position:
I believe the High Adventure Recreation Center is a good project that allows the combined oversight of
the city with a private industry component that will manage and operate the facility. Even more
importantly, however, it has spurred additional investment into our downtown that is the foundation of
even more future redevelopment and interest in Ogden City as a place to do business.
Other Information Sources:
Ogden City web-site
Current Projects
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Mall Development - High Adventure Recreation Center
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